Positive Correlation between IP-10 and IFN-γ Levels in Rhesus Monkeys (Macaca mulatta) with Either Naturally Acquired or Experimental Infection of Mycobacterium tuberculosis

Numerous studies identify that IP-10 and IFN-γ are involved in leucocyte migration and activation and regarded as promising surrogate biomarkers in human and bovine tuberculosis infection, but there is lack of evidence for IP-10 in nonhuman primates. In this study, we directly determined IP-10 and IFN-γ levels in plasma from 30 healthy monkeys, 30 monkeys with naturally acquired tuberculosis, 4 monkeys experimentally infected with tuberculosis, and PPD stimulated whole blood of 14 monkeys with naturally acquired tuberculosis by ELISA. Higher plasma levels of IP-10 and IFN-γ were observed in natural tuberculosis monkeys than in healthy controls. The dynamic changes of plasma IP-10 and IFN-γ in experimental infections showed consistent representation of a transient increase during the infection period. After PPD stimulation, release of IP-10 and IFN-γ is significantly induced in natural tuberculosis monkeys, but the stimulation index of IP-10 was significantly lower than IFN-γ. Further analysis showed that positive correlation between IP-10 and IFN-γ existed in healthy and tuberculosis monkeys. Our findings support plasma IP-10 and IFN-γ as biomarkers for monitoring ongoing inflammation of nonhuman primate tuberculosis, and IFN-γ is a more valuable diagnostic biomarker

Systemic Candida parapsilosis Infection Model in Immunosuppressed ICR Mice and Assessing the Antifungal Efficiency of Fluconazole

This study was to establish a systemic C. parapsilosis infection model in immunosuppressed ICR mice induced by cyclophosphamide and evaluate the antifungal efficiency of fluconazole. Three experiments were set to confirm the optimal infectious dose of C. parapsilosis, outcomes of infectious model, and antifungal efficiency of fluconazole in vivo, respectively. In the first experiment, comparisons of survival proportions between different infectious doses treated groups showed that the optimal inoculum for C. parapsilosis was 0.9 × 105 CFU per mouse. The following experiment was set to observe the outcomes of infection at a dose of 0.9 × 105 CFU C. parapsilosis. Postmortem and histopathological examinations presented fugal-specific lesions in multiorgans, especially in kidneys, characterized by inflammation, numerous microabscesses, and fungal infiltration. The CFU counts were consistent with the histopathological changes in tissues. Th1/Th2 cytokine imbalance was observed with increases of proinflammatory cytokines and no responses of anti-inflammatory cytokines in sera and kidneys. In the last experiment, model based evaluation of fluconazole indicated that there were ideal antifungal activities for fluconazole at dosages of 10–50 mg/kg/d. Data demonstrates that the research team has established a systemic C. parapsilosis infection model in immunosuppressed ICR mice, affording opportunities for increasing our understanding of fungal pathogenesis and treatment

Old master, new neighbor : Putin's Russia in the Czech foreign policy discourse

BEAUDUIN, Adrien. Old Master, New Neighbour: Putin's Russia in the Czech Foreign Policy Discourse. Master thesis. Charles University, Faculty of Social Sciences, Insitute of International Studies. Supervisor Dr.Jiří Vykoukal, 2013. Abstract The return to democracy in Central-Eastern Europe (CEE) and the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991 did not mean that CEE-Russian relations could start anew. This dissertation uses post-structuralist discourse analysis and takes the case of the Czech Republic to examine the development of the Czech official foreign policy discourse towards Russia between 2001 and 2009. Looking at the history of opinions on Russia in the Czech lands and analyzing five events or periods of the 2000s, the present works tracks the evolution of the Russia's identity as constructed by the official Czech discourse. On the official level, the influence of Russia's image on the construction of the Czech identity is also analyzed. The results showed a worsening of relations after 2006 and suggest that the image of the 'Russian threat' has not disappeared from the political discourse in the Czech Republic. Moreover, the Czech official foreign policy discourse constructed the image of the Czech Republic as anchored in its Euroatlantic and European orientation

Protection of personality and organ transplantation

(A) Hematoxylin-eosin staining and (B) immunohistochemical staining of LR and WZS in different stages. MYHC-fast (Abcam, ab7784) antibody was used in (B) which was marked by red. Scale bar = 50 μm. (TIF 7013 kb

Additional file 6: Figure S4. of iTRAQ-based quantitative proteomic analysis reveals the distinct early embryo myofiber type characteristics involved in landrace and miniature pig

GO categories of identified proteins. (TIF 1081 kb